Thread: Had a chat with my Ob

I'd say overall it went pretty well. I know my OB isn't really a natural birth type of guy so I didn't expect too much. I found out I'm GBS- so he okayed a heplock. I could probably have pushed for nothing at all, but needles don't really bother me and I doubt I'll even notice it once it's in. I figure it's one less fight to fight. I really just want to make sure I'm not getting pumped full of fluids. He also agreed to no episotomy under any circumstance, but warned me that I would probably tear a little since I did with DD. I figured as much.

He did seem genuinely baffled about me wanting to avoid the epi though. He wasn't discouraging at all, he just seemed confused. I was trying to explain it to him, but I'm not sure I got my point across. I guess because I had one with DD, he didn't understand why I would want to change my mind now. I was feeling a little bad about this until I realized it doesn't matter at all. He won't be there much if at all for my labor anyway so it's not like I was expecting labor support from him.

The only problem that came up is my blood pressure. It's starting to creep up like it did at the end of my pregnancy with DD. It's still in the normal range now, but it's been reading high for me (even taking it a couple of times). With Audrey it kept getting worse and worse every week until it was really high. The doctor told me not to worry and that he thinks it's likely I'll go on my own before it becomes a big problem, but it freaks me out a little. I do NOT want to be induced again. I will definetely put it off as long as it's safe, and I know the doctor won't push me unless it's really bad. I just hoped I wouldn't have to deal with it this time as I've taken much better care of myself. Frustrating. Does anyone know of anything I can do to improve it?

Glad your OB appointment went okay and he is mostly on board.

Have you looked into the Brewer Diet for your blood pressure? It might help enough to keep it in a safe range so you can avoid an induction.

I also have high BP at the end of my pg's. There are two things you can do to help though. Taking a magnesium/ calcium supplement will help. Also if you can find a chiro who specializes in pg there is an adjustment that works great on BP issues. it only took one time for me to bring down my BP which was borderline. I also do all the diet things, but that is not enough for me either.

Yeah I've been following the Brewer diet more or less since my m/s cleared up. It hasn't made a difference.

I actually have some Cal/Mag from before I was pregnant but I haven't been taking it. I could start that today. How much do you take? That would be so wonderful if that will help.

Along with diet, walking on my treadmill twice a day for 15 minutes really makes a great difference in my BP. It doesn't need to be high speed either.

My OB reacted the same way when I said I did not want an epi this time.

As for the BP, mine is higher than usual too, but still considered "normal." I think as long as you are in normal range, everything should be fine.

I take whatever the recommended dose is on the bottle. For me that is three, but I am not sure how many mg the tablets are. The other thing I did when mine was higher was I monitored it daily at the grocery store so I could tell my mw what it was . That way it was more than just this one time measurement.

Make sure you're staying well-hydrated. High blood pressure in pregnancy is almost always caused by low blood volume rather than the other things that can cause HBP in a non-pregnant person. I also second the idea of taking your BP regularly besides what is done at the doctor's office. You can buy a BP monitor at the drug store for about $40. If you go the grocery store route, make sure you go to the same machine every day. And finally, if your arms are larger than average, either from muscle or fat, then make sure they use the larger cuff because the normal one will show an artificially elevated BP.

Thanks so much everyone. I've upped my walking routine to every day (was every other) and I'm taking the cal/mag supplement. I will definetely make sure I'm drinking plenty of water too. It is starting to get hot here. I'm feeling so much better and like I can keep this under control. I'm not feeling nearly as stressed about it anymore, which can't hurt either

My midwife also recommends juice of half a lemon or lime plus two teaspoons of cream of tartar in a half a cup of water once a day for three days and passion flower tincture several times a day. Cut caffeine, up the fluids, keep up the protein, walk/exercise, rest, don't eliminate salt, and most of all RELAX before heading into your appointment ~Nothing like "white coat hypertention" over fears of high blood pressure to raise it!


Hope that helps some and that it is a non issue for you.